Staffing agency license in New Hampshire: a 1901 local law, leasing and nurse agencies
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New Hampshire has no state license for employment agencies, search firms or temporary staffing companies. What it does have is an oddity: RSA chapter 274, a law from 1901 that makes it an offense to keep an "intelligence office" without a license and gives cities and towns, not the state, the power to issue one. Alongside that sit two modern state filings that do catch staffing firms: a license for employee leasing companies under RSA 277-B, and, since 2023, registration for nurse agencies under RSA 326-M.
This page covers all three and the employer accounts every New Hampshire staffing firm needs. For other states, see employment agency license requirements.
Not legal advice. This summarizes RSA chapters 274, 277-B and 326-M as published by the New Hampshire General Court, as of October 2026. Where I could not confirm how a rule is applied today, I say so. Confirm your position with the agency, your municipality or counsel.
RSA 274: the 1901 intelligence office law
Title XXIII, chapter 274, "Employment Offices," has six live sections, all dating from 1901 (a seventh was repealed in 1991). The core rule, RSA 274:1, says that whoever, without a license, keeps an intelligence office to obtain or give information about places of employment for "servants or other laborers," to procure or give information about such workers for employers, or to procure or give information "concerning employment in business," shall be fined $10 for each day the office is kept.
| Section | What it says |
|---|---|
| 274:2 | The mayor and aldermen of a city or the selectmen of a town may grant licenses and revoke them "at pleasure" |
| 274:3 | The city or town clerk signs and records the license; it names the licensee, the business and the building, and runs until the next May 1 |
| 274:4 | The fee is whatever the board deems reasonable, but not less than $2 |
| 274:5 | The license protects only the place named in it unless the board consents to a move |
| 274:6 | The clerk records any revocation and gives written notice |
Read literally, the definition is broad: it does not turn on who pays, and "giving information concerning employment in business" would cover most recruiting. There is no fee cap, no bond and no state agency involved. As of October 2026 I could not confirm whether any New Hampshire city or town still issues intelligence office licenses or enforces the chapter. A 2020 survey of state licensing laws compiled by South Carolina's Secretary of State listed New Hampshire among states with no licensing requirement it could find.
A practical way to handle it:
- Ask the clerk. When you open an office, ask the city or town clerk in writing whether the municipality licenses intelligence or employment offices under RSA 274, and keep the reply.
- Note the date. If a municipality does issue one, licenses run until May 1, so plan renewals.
- Remote recruiters. The chapter is written around keeping an office in a city or town. A recruiter working from home for an out-of-state firm is the least likely to be affected, but the safest answer is still a written one.
What applies, by business model
| Model | State filing | Local |
|---|---|---|
| Direct hire or executive search | None | Ask the clerk about RSA 274 |
| Temporary staffing (non-health care) | None specific to staffing | Ask the clerk about RSA 274 |
| Nurses or LNAs to health care facilities | OPLC nurse agency registration (RSA 326-M) | Same |
| Long-term employee leasing (PEO) | Department of Labor license (RSA 277-B) | Same |
Employee leasing companies: RSA 277-B
New Hampshire licenses PEOs, which it calls employee leasing companies, through the Department of Labor. The chapter's definition covers ongoing arrangements that are not aimed at temporarily supplementing a workforce, and RSA 277-B:4 says plainly that the chapter "shall not include temporary help service," defined as a service where an organization hires its own employees and assigns them to clients for absences, skill shortages, seasonal workloads and special projects.
- Fees (277-B:5). A non-refundable $100 application fee for an initial license, a $100 renewal application fee, and a $500 annual license fee. A restricted license, available to a company domiciled in another state for limited operation in New Hampshire, costs $100 a year, or the home state's fee if greater. A two-year license costs twice the annual fee.
- Financial assurance (277-B:6). An audited financial statement showing at least $100,000 in working capital, or a surety bond, letter of credit or securities of $100,000 approved by the commissioner, plus any working capital deficit.
- Renewal. Apply at least 60 days before the license expires.
- No commingling. Each application includes a certification that the applicant does not run a temporary help service through the same entity as its leasing company, and that the two do not commingle finances.
- Penalties (277-B:12). Up to $1,000 per employee for each day of violation, and the same exposure for a client company that does business with an unlicensed leasing company.
The client-side penalty is unusual. If you run both a temp desk and a co-employment offering, keep them in separate entities as the certification requires, and expect New Hampshire clients to ask for your license.
Nurse agencies: RSA 326-M
A 2023 law (2023, 242:1, effective October 7, 2023) created RSA 326-M. A "nurse agency" is any person or entity "that employs, assigns or refers nurses or licensed nursing assistants to a health care facility on a per diem or temporary basis for a fee," including through apps or other technology platforms. Licensed home health agencies, entities wholly owned by licensed health care facilities, and individuals offering only their own services are excluded.
- Registration. Nurse agencies register with the Office of Professional Licensure and Certification (OPLC) under RSA 326-M:2, certifying under oath that the application is complete. The application fee is set by OPLC rule (chapter Plc 1600); I could not confirm the current amount.
- No double-booking. An agency may not commit the same nurse or nursing assistant to more than one facility for the same shift and then cancel a commitment or make a facility bid again for services already promised.
- No on-site recruiting. An agency "shall not recruit potential employees on the premises of a health care facility."
Unlike Maine's rule, which reaches businesses that "primarily" supply nursing staff, New Hampshire's definition has no "primarily" test. A general staffing firm that places even an occasional nurse or licensed nursing assistant with a hospital, nursing home or other health care facility on a per diem or temporary basis for a fee fits the words of RSA 326-M:1. If your light industrial or clerical desk takes a one-off request for LNAs, register first or decline the order.
The no-recruiting rule also deserves a line in your recruiter training. Talking to a facility's own staff in the break room about joining your agency is exactly what the statute forbids, even if the conversation starts casually.
Employer accounts every New Hampshire staffing firm needs
- Unemployment insurance with New Hampshire Employment Security; the staffing firm is the employer of record for its temps.
- Workers' compensation under RSA 281-A. See staffing agency insurance requirements.
- Secretary of State registration for out-of-state entities. New Hampshire has no broad personal income tax on wages, so there is no state wage withholding account, but check the business profits and business enterprise taxes with the Department of Revenue Administration.
The setup sequence is in how to start a staffing agency. Next door, Massachusetts licenses employment agencies, including out-of-state ones doing business there (see staffing agency license in Massachusetts), and Maine caps fees charged to workers and registers temporary nurse agencies (see staffing agency license in Maine).
A New Hampshire checklist
NEW HAMPSHIRE CHECK — [date] — owner: [name]
Local:
[ ] Clerk asked in writing about RSA 274 license (city/town)
[ ] If issued: license on file; renewal before May 1
Model:
[ ] Nurses/LNAs to facilities: OPLC registration (RSA 326-M);
no double-booking; no recruiting on facility premises
[ ] Long-term leasing: DOL license (RSA 277-B), $100,000
working capital or security; separate entity from temp desk
Employer accounts:
NHES UI account; workers' comp; SOS registration;
DRA business taxes checked [ ]
Next review: [date]Re-check if you start placing licensed nursing assistants or nurses, even on a short per diem basis, or begin co-employing a client's staff, since both bring state registration with them.
Questions people ask
Does New Hampshire require a staffing agency license?
Not from the state. The only general statute is RSA chapter 274, a 1901 law under which a city's mayor and aldermen or a town's selectmen may license 'intelligence offices,' with a $10-a-day fine for operating one without a license. I could not confirm whether any municipality still issues these licenses, so ask the clerk where your office is.
Do PEOs need a license in New Hampshire?
Yes. Under RSA 277-B, employee leasing companies are licensed by the Commissioner of Labor. The statute sets a $100 application fee and a $500 annual license fee, requires $100,000 in working capital or equivalent security, and lets the commissioner fine both an unlicensed leasing company and a client that uses one up to $1,000 per employee per day. Temporary help services are excluded.
Do nurse staffing agencies register in New Hampshire?
Yes. Since a 2023 law, RSA 326-M requires nurse agencies that employ, assign or refer nurses or licensed nursing assistants to health care facilities on a temporary basis for a fee, including app-based platforms, to register with the Office of Professional Licensure and Certification. The fee is set by OPLC rule, and I could not confirm the current amount.
Can a New Hampshire nurse agency recruit at a client facility?
No. RSA 326-M:3 bars nurse agencies from recruiting potential employees on the premises of a health care facility, and from committing the same nurse or nursing assistant to two facilities for the same shift and then cancelling one or making a facility bid again for services already promised.